IT WAS a champagne moment on Tuesday night as Malmesbury Victoria secured the Wiltshire League title with a 2-0 win over Marlborough Town.

The Flying Monk Ground side have made a dramatic turnaround in the space of the last year after nearly closing their doors after falling out of the Hellenic League.

However despite clinching the league with three games to spare Wayne Kibble will not be taking his side up to a new division.

After not applying for promotion, before going on an unbeaten run which started back in November, Malmesbury will spend another season in the Wiltshire League and Kibble believes the club will be stronger for it.

“We didn’t know where we were going to be financially and we didn’t know we would go on a run like this so we didn’t apply to go up,” said Kibble.

“The players have worked very hard all season, but since November they have been unbeaten in the league and it is a brilliant feeling.

“From almost closing the doors last year we got a side on our hands and the FA Vase run gave them belief.

“In all honesty I think it is possibly a good thing in a financial respect, because we can now get a firm footing for these lads to go further after another season.

“It will be good to have them all playing together for another season before we go on a big adventure.

“I would have loved to have gone up and so would have the lads, but to take the positives out of it we’ll be in a much better financial footing and the boys will have another season under their belts.”

Kibble has thanked support of the local community in helping them to turn the fortunes of the club around in the last year and hopes to pay them back by presenting the trophy during the last game of the season against Westbury United next Tuesday evening.

“We have got to hand it to a lot of hard working volunteers from down the club, but without Malmesbury community we would have been dead and buried,” added Kibble.

“The support has been absolutely fantastic down there and we have been getting 60 or 70 through the gate, which is not massive but it is money in the till every night Malmesbury have got a team playing.

“It will be nice to give them something back because without them we wouldn’t be in this position right now.”